Diagnosing patient flow issues in the emergency department: an Australasian hospital case study.

Abstract

Purpose: This study investigates how a hospital can increase the flow of patients through its emergency department by using benchmarking and process improvement techniques borrowed from the manufacturing sector.

Design/methodology/approach: An in-depth case study of an Australasian public hospital utilises rigorous, multi-method data collection procedures with systems thinking to benchmark an emergency department (ED) value stream and identify the performance inhibitors.

Findings: High levels of value stream uncertainty result from inefficient processes and weak controls. Reduced patient flow arises from senior management's commitment to simplistic government targets, clinical staff that lack basic operations management skills, and fragmented information systems. High junior/senior staff ratios aggravate the lack of inter-functional integration and poor use of time and material resources, increasing the risk of a critical patient incident.

Research limitations/implications: This research is limited to a single case; hence, further research should assess value stream maturity and associated performance enablers and inhibitors in other emergency departments experiencing patient flow delays.

Practical implications: This study illustrates how hospital managers can use systems thinking and a context-free performance benchmarking measure to identify needed interventions and transferable best practices for achieving seamless patient flow.

Originality/value: This study is the first to operationalise the theoretical concept of the seamless healthcare system to acute care as defined by Parnaby and Towill (2008). It is also the first to use the uncertainty circle model in an Australasian public healthcare setting to objectively benchmark an emergency department's value stream maturity.